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Geriatrics

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The rising number of geriatric patients with complex, chronic, and often multiple health conditions presents numerous policy challenges. RAND has conducted the most comprehensive examination of the quality of medical care provided to the vulnerable elderly and coordinates interdisciplinary research centers to develop and study innovative clinical and health services interventions to improve health care outcomes for geriatric patients.

RAND developed and tested quality indicators, creating a comprehensive assessment system to help inform both health care providers and consumers about improving quality of care for the vulnerable elderly.

Annual costs of dementia exceed those of cancer and heart disease and will only continue to rise as the nation's population ages. Key policy options can help strengthen and improve long-term services and supports for those with dementia and their caregivers.

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This article describes the current status of home-based medical care in the United States and offers a brief narrative of a fictional homebound patient and the health events and fragmented care she faces.

The purpose of this study was to examine biological and behavioral explanations for gender differences in leukocyte telomere length (LTL), a biomarker of cell aging that has been hypothesized to contribute to women's greater longevity.

As millions of Americans struggle to help loved ones with dementia, policymakers should consider more ways to improve long-term services and supports for the soaring numbers of people with the debilitating condition and their caregivers.

Annual costs of dementia exceed those of cancer and heart disease and will only continue to rise as the nation's population ages. Key policy options can help strengthen and improve long-term services and supports for those with dementia and their caregivers.

Policy options to improve dementia long-term care include those that increase public awareness and promote earlier detection, improve access to and quality of services, increase support to family caregivers, and reduce the cost burden.

As millions of Americans struggle to help loved ones with dementia, policymakers should consider more ways to improve long-term services and supports for the soaring number of people with the debilitating condition and their caregivers.

In response to the growing concern about healthcare–associated infections (HAIs), US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) developed the National Action Plan to Prevent Healthcare-associated Infections.

This paper describes progress and challenges in Healthcare–associated infections (HAI) research and prevention practices, as explained through an examination of Health and Human Services (HHS) Action Plan's goals, inputs, and implementation in each area.

The objective of this analysis was to identify key system capacity issues for sustainability from evaluation of the Action Plan to prevent healthcare–associated infections, a major national initiative launched by the US Department of Health and Human Services in 2009.

The nursing home culture change movement aims to improve resident quality of life and quality of care by emphasizing the deinstitutionalization of nursing home culture and focusing on person-centered care.

Nursing home culture change remains an evolving field. Although culture change has clear face validity, the current evidence does not give providers sufficient information for selecting interventions based on the expectation of improving outcomes.

RAND developed and tested quality indicators, creating a comprehensive assessment system to help inform both health care providers and consumers about improving quality of care for the vulnerable elderly.

The Group of 8 industrial nations is convening a special session to seek an international approach to dementia research at a time the disease is being recognized as a 21st century global health crisis of historic proportions.

Applications are being accepted now through March 21 for the 21st annual RAND Summer Institute (RSI), a pair of conferences on aging that will be held next July 7–10 at the RAND Corporation headquarters in Santa Monica.

Most medical research focuses on fighting individual disease. But delayed aging could boost life expectancy by more than two years and yield more than $7 trillion over 50 years. Greater investment in research to delay aging could be a very efficient way to prevent disease, improve public health, and extend healthy life.

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Researcher Spotlight

Affiliated Adjunct Economist

Pierre-Carl Michaud is an adjunct economist at RAND. His work focuses on the economics of aging, which includes saving and retirement outcomes as well as health processes. This is funded by various grants from the National Institutes of Aging.

Senior Advisor

Brian Mittman is director of the VA Center for Implementation Practice and Research Support and a RAND senior advisor. He is also co-editor-in-chief emeritus of the journal Implementation Science and a member of the PCORI Methodology Committee. His research interests include implementation…

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